Kunkle Law Blog

Am I protected with a common law trademark – without federal registration? Q: I recently started selling a product in the US. I registered the copyright for photos and designed some unique product packaging that included…

Q: I recently started selling a product throughout the US. I have registered the copyright for photos and designed some unique product packaging that included the brand name I came up with. I think it pretty distinctive and I…

While some folks might think trademarks can be a little scary, I know that they can also be a little fun. G&S: Processed cereal-based food to be used as a breakfast food, snack food or ingredient for making other foods.Serial ……

Now, Why Didn't I Think of That?

A patent is the grant to a patentee, or inventor, of an exclusive right, privilege and liberty of making, constructing or using the invention and selling it to others to be used. In Canada the legal owner of an invention can obtain a patent…

A trade-mark can consist of a word, slogan, logo, symbol, design or any combination thereof, adopted and used by a manufacturer or merchant to identify his or her goods or services and to distinguish them from those manufactured and sold by…

Do you have an idea or an invention that you think you should maybe patent? If so, we can assist with patenting that idea or doing some patent searching to see if it has been done before. We normally start things off with an initial…

Reasonable Balance

In the past few years I’ve become a fan of Taylor Swift. Perhaps not of her music, but the way she handles her career and her life. Standing up to Spotify and the paltry royalty rates it pays was just … Continue reading…

Today is a momentus day. It’s the second inauguration of Barak Obama, the first African-American President of the United States. Today is also the day on which we honor the memory and legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr., the…

The Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property Act of 2008 (the “PRO-IP Act”) enhanced civil and criminal penalties for intellectual property infringement as well as established the Intellectual Property Enforcement…

AS-IS: Ecommerce, Internet, Software & Technology Law and Contracts

Follow the link for an article on the startling new importance of design patents. Design patents were formerly something of a backwater of patent law, but, as the article explains, a 125-year-old “sleeper” provision in the law could…

How to Protect Long-Term Investments in Operational Contracts (Full Article)

Consider one of the most difficult issues you’ll ever encounter when negotiating a contract: one party must make a large, long-term investment for the deal to work, but won’t sign the contract unless its investment (and its return on the…

Starting up a business, or entering a new market channel, is never easy. Starting a business on the World Wide Web (the web), or moving an existing “offline” business there, requires not only effort and risk, but also demands new…

Taylor Swift is a 25 year old seven-time GRAMMY Award winner. She was the youngest songwriter ever hired by the Sony/ATV Music publishing house (at age 14) and was the youngest recipient ever to receive music…

Hello Organic Kitty. Hello Kitty has been around pretty much my whole life. In fact, the iconic cuddly cartoon (don’t dare call her a CAT!) turned 40 years old this past summer, an occasion celebrated with Hello…

nerdlaw.org

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is bracing for a legal battle after public attorney Julie Murray filed the complaint at the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). The case was filed late May at the U.S. District Court for…

In May of 2015, Deborah Craven underwent surgery to have a mass removed from her eighth rib. According to a statement filed by Yale-New Haven hospital with the Connecticut Department of Public Health, the incorrect rib, however, was removed.…

Of the 177 women who took contraceptive pills made by the manufacturers of Qualitest Pharmaceuticals, 113 still got pregnant with 94 of these women deciding to deliver their child. Qualitest and its manufacturers committed the mistake of…

Business, Entertainment, Sports & Technology (B.E.S.T.) Law Blog

Podcast: Tribute Bands This month on the Business Entertainment Sports and Technology Law Podcast, we pay tribute to those who pay tribute…to their favorite bands. Join ARC Law Group partner Mark A. Pearson and attorney Ben Shaw as…

Podcast: CLA Music Business Seminar 2014 This month on the Business Entertainment Sports and Technology Law Podcast, we get you ready for the upcoming California Lawyers for the Arts Music Business Seminar. Join ARC Law Group partner Mark…

CopyOwner

Written from the perspective owners of expressive materials (movies, books, pictures, songs, video games, etc.) who are subject to competition laws, copyright laws, and freedom of expression laws. By John T. Mitchell.

The Internet began as an unregulated network of networks intended to allow anyone anywhere to communicate with anyone at any time. It was blind to who was communicating with whom about what. It was blind to who had more money – a small…

Today (May 28, 2014), I heard President Obama’s speech at West Point during the same drive-time as John Kerry’s interview about Edward Snowden. The words clashed.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: I hereby absolve all cadets who are on…

Earlier this week the Department of Justice published a long awaited policy document on amending Irish law relating to interception of communications. In a welcome break with tradition the Department has been more willing to engage with…

December 6th, 2015 marks DRI’s 10th year at the forefront of digital rights advocacy. To mark this momentous occasion, we’re proud to present a list of 10 key DRI accomplishments over the past decade: 1/ Overturned…

We are ready to announce that our team of counsel will be joining forces with the firm of Miller Nash Graham & Dunn, LLP (MNG&D). Our alliance provides the clients of Reiser Legal with affordable access to the…

When trademark disputes pop up, often breweries agree to get along. In doing so, two beverage businesses can seek what’s called a trademark coexistence agreement. This is an agreement that essentially sets forth trademark restrictions…

These days, it’s still rare to see a craft brewery in any sort of legal hot water (unless it’s a contentious trademark dispute). However, a recent employment discrimination action filed by a former Minnesota brewer has serious…

Learn the one important step all active-duty military should take to ensure full benefits compensation for themselves and their families.
The post The One Simple Step All Active-Duty Military Personnel Should Take appeared first on Military…

Learn the one important step all active-duty military should take to ensure full benefits compensation for themselves and their families.
The post The One Simple Step All Active-Duty Military Personnel Should Take appeared first on Military…

Robert B. Goss Designated “Master Advocate” by the National Institute for Trial Advocacy

An experienced trial advocate can assist you if your legal matter goes to court. Robert B. Goss, founder of the Law Office of Robert B. Goss, P.C. recently received the National Institute for Trial Advocacy "Master Advocate" award. Find out…

The following is excerpted from an article posted at The Wistar Institute:
My name is Scott Hensley, Ph.D., and I’m an assistant professor here at The Wistar Institute. Like most academic biomedical researchers, I rely on grants from the…

Another aspiring songwriter guided by uninformed wishful thinking seeks to cash in against a celebrity. In this case, plaintiff Vincent Peters sued Kanye West claiming that Kanye copied his song “Stronger” from Peters, who…

Another aspiring songwriter guided by uninformed wishful thinking seeks to cash in against a celebrity. In this case, plaintiff Vincent Peters sued Kanye West claiming that Kanye copied his song “Stronger” from Peters, who…

Awapatent IP blog

During the meeting of the EU Competitiveness Council on 28 November 2016 in Brussels, the UK Minister of State for Energy and Intellectual Property stated that the UK will proceed with their ratification process in the months to come.
The…

Ethics and the risk of conflicts of interest are issues that all law firms have to beware of and manage properly. When you use a law firm, you should always expect that your information is handled with confidentiality.
Today, many law firms…

On 16 December 2015, the new Regulation 2015/2424 of the European Parliament and of the Council came into effect.
The Regulation, and the corresponding Directive (2015/2436), inter alia deal with the question what kind of signs an EU…

This post does an excellent job of summarizing the kind of common sense HIPAA waivers that the U.S. government can impose during a time of emergency. There remains a significant of confusion and myth-making around HITECH/HIPAA.

There is probably no hotter cyberlaw issue today than privacy ("Privacy"). Consumers often ask, "What are all those e-commerce sites doing with our data?" Businesses need to be aware of the various statutes and regulations that govern the…

Guest blog by Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Deputy Director of the USPTO Russ Slifer
It is critically important that the USPTO issue patents that are of the highest quality possible, and to accomplish…

Guest blog by Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Deputy Director of the USPTO Russ Slifer
It is critically important that the USPTO issue patents that are of the highest quality possible, and to accomplish…

Austin Trademark Lawyer Blawg

Ozzy Osbourne filed suit this week against guitarist Tony Iommi for claiming ownership of the band's name. Iommi claims that Ozzy and the other band founders relinquished their rights to the name in the 1980s. Iommi's federal registration…

Marc Randazza points to one of the dumbest trademark demand letters he's ever read: dumb not because it has "the misplaced certitude, the overblown rhetoric, the baseless imputation of evil to the recipient, and over-all lack of…

Under Section 271(a), activities considered to be infringing a patent when performed wholly in the United States may be transformed into non-infringing activities if some of those activities are performed outside of the United States. In this…

In GPNE Corp. v. Apple Inc. (Fed. Cir. August 1, 2016), the written description was presented in a way that narrowly described the invention, and thus the court ascribed a narrow meaning to the terms of the claims and found no patent…

In AGIS, Inc. v. Life360, Inc. (Fed. Cir. July 28, 2016), AGIS (patent owner) held a patent directed to a cellular communication system that allows multiple cellular phone users to monitor the location of others and their status via a visual…

There seem to be only two types of stories about trademarks that the media picks up: 1) Trademarks filed by celebrities and 2) Stories about a big company picking on a small business for supposed similarities in business names or logos.…

As noted in this post, U.S. design patents usually need to be filed within 6 months of a foreign priority application. This is because many foreign design registration systems grant design registration almost immediately, guaranteeing that…

Trademarks protect branding- things like your business name and your logo that you put on your products so that your customers know they are not knock-offs or imitations. For a really big business, a brand is worth big bucks and the cost of a…

Current copyright readings

Bibliography of current articles on the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, the TEACH act and other copyright issues. Maintained by Claire Stewart, Northwestern University Library. With contributions from Paul Clough, Stu Baker and Brian Nielsen.

Wal-Mart Drops DRM Servers, Customers Lose Musicby Scott NicholsPC World, publication date: 29 September 2008 "Wal-Mart is just following the recent trend of screwing over customers by dropping DRM, as led by Microsoft and Yahoo. Sure,…

First Sale Victory in Vernorby WILLIAM PATRYPatry Copyright Blog, publication date: 22 May 2008 "...Judge Jones found that the transactions were legal. To do so, he had to wade through a thicket of court of appeals' opinions, ultimately…

Adopting Software Use Policies to Protect Against Copyright Infringement Claim

The Business Software Alliance (“BSA”), and the Software & Information Industry Association (“SIIA”) pursue copyright infringement claims on behalf of software publishers, such as Microsoft, Adobe, and Autodesk,…

Trademark Blog of the Trademark Lawyer's Mind

Just wrapped up an interview with Noticias 62 about Joaquin “Chapo” Guzman, the notorious drug lord who was recently captured, and trademark issues related to him believe it or not. Evidently, his family has filed for…

Michael Cohen of Cohen IP Law Group will be presenting a 30 minute lecture on IP issues on December 6th at the LA Gadget Expo. We are also a Silver Sponsor of the LA Gadget Expo! They’re giving 50% off exhibitor fees to those of you who…

We have been extremely busyat Cohen IP Law Group. Here are just some of the trademark and patent registrations we received this week alone. We are excited to exceed our 2014 total registrations for our clients!Los Angeles Trademark Lawyer

The 2014 Libel season kicks off in style with three separate actions against three tabloids. As revealed by the Huffington Post today the main tabloids account for the majority of complaints to the Press Complaints Commission - the…

The retrial of Knox and Sollecito for the murder of Metedith Kercher has returned a guilty verdict and seen the sentence increased. Latest from BBC News http://bbc.in/LffAnLThe verdict was received as a shock by some while welcomed by others…

The 14th Edelman Trust Barometer was unveiled to the great and good at Davos this week – as well as to the rest of us.The 2014 Edelman Trust Barometer revealed that the biggest decline was trust in government and business. While business…

The Substantially Similar Weblog

I started this blog over a decade ago. Over time, my priorities have changed—family, work, home, etc. Many other avenues for online self-expression have also developed in the interim. I’m done for now. Old entries remain online, but do…

Dear Lazyweb:
I have a bash script with a while loop that takes a long time to process. It restores file modification times for complicated reasons not worth discussing here. Removing some nonessential stuff, I have the following code (I know…

Seattle Sports, Entertainment & Trademark Lawyer Blog

I am excited to announce that my article, The Evolution of Sports Law has been published in the latest October 2015 Article of the NWLawyer Magazine. You can check out the article HERE. I will also post the full article below for…

https://www.spreaker.com/embed/player/standard?episode_id=6151830&autoplay=false On Monday 5/25/15 I had the pleasure of being a guest of Dr. James Gore on his radio show New Urban Unlimited on 1150AM KKNW in the Seattle area. I will be…

Receiving a subpoena letter related to a copyright infringement case from your Internet Service Provider (ISP) such as Comcast or Century link or receiving a demand letter offering to settle your case prior to litigation can be a shock to the…

Net neutrality: FCC tells Obama to back offHas Switzerland cracked the net neutrality riddle?CJEU asked to rule on copyright liability of operators of free and open Wi-Fi networks Operation Onymous may have exposed flaws in Tor, developers…

Just recently, FundersClub, an online venture capital portal open to accredited investors, published a guide on startup investments. The guide is available online at their education center. It's a great quick read for first time…

Innovation in crowdfunding space continues, and I would like to report on two interesting developments. Both have to do with the crowdfunding portal WeFunder, currently the largest Regulation Crowdfunding portal in the U.S. First,…

Last week, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") made an important step towards facilitating intrastate securities offerings. Up until now, the intrastate securities offerings had to rely on Section 3(a)(11) and Rule 147…

In Loops, LLC v EUIPO, Case T‑385/15 (14 June 2016), the General Court of the European Union held that held that the three dimensional shape of a toothbrush lacked any distinctive character and could not be registered as an EU ……

A U.S. district judge has refused to enter a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the University of California, Davis in litigation contesting the university’s alleged refusal to transfer or license strawberry germplasm developed…

On 14 April 2016, a criminal court in the Spanish city of Segovia sentenced an individual to a six month prison term for infringing the plant variety protection (PVP) rights of Limagrain Europe SA in the soft wheat variety known as…

Chemicals and innovation: Strategies for R&amp;D in emerging economies)

Chemicals and innovation: Strategies for R&D in emerging economies Courtsy by John Baker Strategies for R&D in emerging economies ICIS has run several roundtables recently where innovation has risen as a topic,…

Indian brings “Minority Report” like hand gestures navigation called “SixthSense” to reality

Remember the scene in the movie Minority Report where Tom Cruise uses hand gestures instead of a mouse to interact with a computer screen displayed on the wall?
Pranav Mistry has brought this to close to reality with USD 320 devices..

Blawgertainment

If you want to find intellectual property law in Edmonton, then there a few things you should know first.
Check out multiple lawyers and get multiple opinions. With anything as important as this, you need to get multiple opinions from a…

1. Joe Jamail
Your attitude will go a long way in determining your success, your recognition, your reputation, and your enjoyment in being a lawyer.
Jamail was also considered to be the wealthiest lawyer in the US. He was a…

This is a fantastic summary video of some of the most important supreme court cases out there. All of these decisions have had massive effect on the state of the US’s legal precedent today.
…
The post Summary of Important…

This weekend marks the beginning of the 129th Annual Meeting of the International Trademark Association. My hometown of Chicago is pleased and privileged to host this year's meeting. Welcome to everyone in attendance, and I hope that you…

Seventh Circuit Finds Particular Expression Of Farting Plush Doll Protected By Copyright And Other Party's Copying Of Numerous Features Is Thus Copyright Infringement

We've all seen it on Beavis & Butt-Head, South Park, or The Simpsons. Some of us even participated in the childish prank in our more juvenile days. Yet how many of us ever thought that the phrase "pull my finger" would one day become the…

Beanie Babies Trademark Infringement Case Found To Be "Exceptional" For Purpose Of Attorney Fees Award

Ty, Inc., creator of the popular "Beanie Babies" plush toys, prevailed on a trademark infringement and unfair competition claim against two defendants, and moved for attorneys' fees based on the contention that this was an "exceptional…

Ravindran Associates

We are proud to announce the arrival of Ravi's 2nd. It arrived about a week ago, all swaddled in white, causing quite a stir in the office. We are, of course, referring to the 2nd edition of "Trade Marks Act - A Commentary", published by…

We are pleased to note that the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore has taken heed of practitioners' feedback, and has started to publish the full text of its legal decisions on its website (look under 2010 for the lovely inaugural .pdf…

Perry Krumsiek & Jack Law Blog

If you are one of the hundreds of thousands of Americans permanently traumatized by the government’s highly lauded, but horribly executed, loan modification program, take heart. I’m here to tell you that there’s another government…

If you are one of the hundreds of thousands of Americans permanently traumatized by the government’s highly lauded, but horribly executed, loan modification program, take heart. I’m here to tell you that there’s…

Before Abraham Lincoln became our greatest president, he was a great corporate lawyer. And before he was a corporate lawyer, he was a brilliant trial lawyer.
In the 1840s, Lincoln represented a Revolutionary War widow who had been bilked…

The Google Nexus 5 phone is a sleek enhancement of last year's Nexus 4 model. It sports a stunning, slightly larger 1920 x 1080 full high definition screen, LTE speed, dual band WiFi support and Bluetooth 4.0. This comprehensive review of the…

Rapper and singer MIA responded to a $1.5 million damages claim in arbitration that was filed by the NFL stemming from MIA's middle finger flip and obscenity she mouthed during the Super Bowl halftime show. The dispute is covered in greater…

eMedia Law insider

What do I need to do to protect my mark after it is registered?
Unlike copyrights and patents, trademarks can last forever if you take the right steps. Once properly registered, you will have to file your first Declaration of Continued Use…

What Happens After My Application is Filed?
After your application is filed, you should receive an email from the USPTO confirming the submission. In a few business days, the USPTO will confirm the application has the necessary information to…

Common Questions During the Application Process
Have you used your mark in commerce and what is the impact of that?
If you are already selling your product or service with the mark on it, you are “using” your mark in commerce. As…

I wrote an article last year in The Tampa Tribune entitled "The Death of American Innovation?" discussing the impact of the America Invents Act (passed in 2011) on the validity and enforceability of patents in our country. One of the…

This will be my first post on a case from outside the Middle District of Florida, but instead comes from the Northern District. I'll let the Judge provide the intro: You live in Gainesville and need to book a party bus, or perhaps…

Branding involves creating Intellectual Property (IP). So, you need to know enough about IP to understand that it is intrinsic to the work. The very choices made as well as their availability involves a solid understanding of IP law. This…

The digital revolution is redefining businesses. Companies that were once confined to marketing to a local audience now have the potential to operate international business from little more than a mobile set up. However, the simplicity…

What Karaoke Can Teach Us about Intellectual Property Law According to a Parliament briefing paper (http://researchbriefings.parliament.uk/ResearchBriefing/Summary/SN06152) published on Monday December 7, the number of businesses in the UK…

Blake Firm Business Law Blog

Website Terms of Use &amp; Click-Wrap Agreements for Effective Business Strategy

Almost every web page has a “click-wrap agreement” style of disclaimer, terms of use (TOU), or terms and conditions of service. This is true even for sites that are not business or e-commerce websites. Software, application, and…

Intellectual property development for technology startup companies comes hand-in-hand with the opportunity to fall into a number of legal and strategic pitfalls. Some are obvious, while others can present counter-intuitive opportunities for…

Real estate insurance policies often include replacement insurance terms for the reconstruction costs of repairing or rebuilding real estate property after a catastrophic event such as a fire or flood. But many commercial real estate…

Jurisdiction is important when dealing with the law. Courts as a rule do not have the power to decide every issue brought before them. A small claims court can’t decide a million-dollar contract dispute. An Alaskan…

We all use public WiFi. Coffee shops, hotels, public spaces, even the New York subway system offer easy and free WiFi connections that allow us to stay connected to the Internet while away from the office. The vast majority of these public…

With its recent Google Books decision, the Second Circuit hasn’t necessarily broken new ground so much as – doing what courts from time immemorial have always done – applied existing law to a new situation. The result,…

Complex I.P. Blog

Liability For Inducing Patent Infringement Arises Only With Proof Of Direct Infringement

The U.S. Supreme Court held in Limelight Networks Inc. v. Akamai Technologies Inc., Case No. 12-786 (June 2, 2014) (available here) that a defendant can only be held liable for inducing infringement of a patent under 35 U. S. C. §271(b)…

IP Wise

IP Wise is moving. Our firm, Brann & Isaacson, launched its new website, www.brannlaw.com, on Friday. And that site is the new home of IP Wise at http://www.brannlaw.com/ip-wise/. Same authors, same content, same perspective on the…

On the eve of Labor Day weekend, perhaps you were planning on sneaking off to the beach with the latest bestseller. Just in case you were looking for a bit more serious fare, the U.S. Copyright Office has obliged, releasing a compendium that…

Last month an administrative law judge at the International Trade Commission posed a straightforward question, and gave a straightforward answer: “whether a licensing entity whose patent-related activities are purely revenue driven can…

Back in November 2014, Crayola filed suit against Alex Toys in federal court in Missouri alleging claims for counterfeiting, trademark dilution and infringement, and unfair competition under federal and Missouri state law. You can read…

Back in November 2014, Crayola filed suit against Alex Toys in federal court in Missouri alleging claims for counterfeiting, trademark dilution and infringement, and unfair competition under federal and Missouri state law. You can read…

This long-running dispute involves the sale of watches in the United States that were purchased on the "gray market" overseas. Omega sold the watches--manufactured in Switzerland--to authorized distributors overseas. Third parties…